Hillsborough County Animal Rescue

The Humane Society of Tampa Bay and the Hillsborough County Pet Resource Center received the ‘Alliance for Animals’ award by Best Friends Animal Society®, the only national animal welfare organization dedicated exclusively to ending the killing of dogs and cats in America’s shelters.

Hillsborough County Pet Resource Center and the Humane Society of Tampa Bay are active partners in Best Friends Animal Society’s No More Homeless Pets® Network* which offers help and support to animal rescue groups and shelters that save lives in their communities.

“Best Friends has always taken a collaborative approach in everything we’ve done, ” said Holly Sizemore, Best Friends Animal Society’s director of national programs, community programs and services. “We believe that by working together — shelters, rescue groups, spay/neuter clinics and more — we can maximize our impact and end the killing of dogs and cats in America’s shelters for good. And in Tampa, they’re proving exactly that.

“The Hillsborough County Pet Resource Center and the Humane Society of Tampa Bay have worked together for years, but recently the two organizations have focused their efforts on saving the lives of cats.

“In 2015, Best Friends awarded the Humane Society of Tampa Bay a grant of $10, 000 for a trap-neuter-return program that would specifically help the Hillsborough County shelter, ” Sizemore said. “Through the program, the Humane Society of Tampa Bay was able to increase the number of spay/neuter surgeries from 4, 000 a year in 2013 to more than 5, 500 in 2015. That helped raise the Hillsborough shelter’s save rate for cats to an amazing 84 percent in 2015, up from 75 percent the year before.

“Because this alliance has been so successful, in 2016, Best Friends awarded the Humane Society of Tampa Bay another grant, this time for $25, 000, allowing them to drastically increase the number of cats they pull from the Hillsborough County shelter, ” Sizemore added.

“The combined efforts of these two organizations are crucial for helping the shelter to get to no-kill. And that’s why the Humane Society of Tampa Bay and the Hillsborough County Pet Resource Center are the winners of this year’s ‘Alliance for Animals’ award, ” Sizemore said.

About the Humane Society of Tampa BayFor more than 100 years, the Humane Society of Tampa Bay has been dedicated to ending animal homelessness and providing care and comfort for companion animals in need. Named a Four-Star Charity by Charity Navigator for six years running, and accredited by AAHA, the standard in veterinary excellence, the Humane Society of Tampa Bay is dedicated to the highest standards in animal sheltering and veterinary care. Our adoption programs, Animal Health Center services, community outreach efforts and volunteer opportunities are essential to the health and well being of animals across Tampa Bay. The Humane Society of Tampa Bay is leading the way because every life counts. www.humanesocietytampa.org.

About Best Friends Animal Society®Best Friends Animal Society is the only national animal welfare organization dedicated exclusively to ending the killing of dogs and cats in America’s shelters. A leader in the no-kill movement, Best Friends runs the nation’s largest no-kill sanctuary for companion animals, adoption centers and spay and neuter facilities in Los Angeles and Salt Lake City as well as lifesaving programs in partnership with more than 1, 500 rescue groups and shelters across the country. Since its founding in 1984, Best Friends has helped reduce the number of animals killed in American shelters from 17 million per year to an estimated 4 million. By continuing to build effective initiatives that reduce the number of animals entering shelters and increase the number who find homes, Best Friends and its nationwide network of members and partners are working to Save Them All®.

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*About the No More Homeless Pets® Network
The No More Homeless Pets® Network is a network of more than 1, 500 animal welfare and sheltering organizations around the country that is committed to saving the lives of homeless pets through effective adoption and spay-neuter programs. Together, the group is working to the end the killing of healthy pets in U.S. shelters.